Joe Rogan opens up to Ilia Topuria on why Fedor Emelianenko never made it to the UFC: "They wanted part of the promotion"

Joe Rogan recently explained to Ilia Topuria why Fedor Emelianenko never competed in the UFC. He noted that there were plenty of behind-the-scenes factors, more so than Emelianenko himself declining to join the world's premier MMA promotion.

Emelianenko was considered by many to be the top heavyweight fighter in the world when competing in Pride FC during his prime. The Russian fighter proved he was worthy of that recognition by defeating several former UFC heavyweight champions and elite-level competition.

After Zuffa acquired the Japan-based promotion, many believed that 'The Last Emperor' competing for Dana White was inevitable. During episode #166 of his JRE MMA Show, Rogan told Topuria that members of Emelianenko's management had ulterior motives and demands.

He mentioned that there were tense negotiations, but the deal never materialized:

"Fedor was controlled by some Russian people that were very rough men, gangster-type characters. And they had a bunch of negotiations with the UFC, but there were very unreasonable demands. They wanted part of the promotion, they wanted to own a piece of everything. They wanted a lot cause they knew that with Fedor, they had their golden ticket and they wanted to play it out as much as possible. Negotiations were very intense and very confrontational."

Check out Joe Rogan's comments below (40:19):

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Joe Rogan tells Ilia Topuria that Fedor Emelianenko's team "wanted to co-promote" with the UFC

During the aforementioned episode, Joe Rogan also revealed to Ilia Topuria that Fedor Emelianenko's team at the time "wanted to co-promote" with the UFC to ensure they made more profit.

Rogan mentioned that though he would have loved to have seen Emelianenko compete in the UFC, he understands why it never happened, saying:

"[Emelianenko's team] wanted to co-promote. They wanted to be a part of the promotion. They wanted more than they deserved. They didn't just want Fedor to get paid, they wanted to get paid. They wanted to make a lot of money and they wanted to get their hooks into the UFC... I get it from their perspective." [41:27]

Check out highlights from Fedor Emelianenko's win over Mirko Cro Cop in Pride FC below: